Out of limbo
by mtranc3
Summary: Rin is back, all is right with the world.


**Title:** Out of limbo  
><strong>Author:<strong> mtranc3  
><strong>Pairing<strong>: Haru/Rin  
><strong>Rating:<strong> PG-13  
><strong>Summary:<strong> Rin is back, all is right with the world.  
><strong>Category:<strong> Drama, Romance  
><strong>Summary:<strong> As I've only watched the first episode and haven't kept up with Free! afterwards, this might be painfully irrelevant. Nevertheless, after seeing that episode I felt there was definitely something between Rin and Haru that needed to be abreacted, hence this ficlet.

You shouldn't have expected anything more. Even after all these years. You haven't changed, so why should he? But you never thought he'd act so… _bored_. Dismissive. Condescending. _'Let's race, Haru'_. Like he's doing you a favour. Checking you off his list on the way to whatever dream he's chasing this time. You were expecting something, but not this. And you're not letting him get away with it. You let Rin get away with way too many things in the past.

Not this time.

You pick up the pace and catch up with him near the side entrance. The door is jammed and he's putting his weight on it. You fold your arms and watch him push it open. It has started raining outside. You spare a thought to wish spring time over, when Rin notices you through the shadows. He looks angry when by all accounts he has no right to be.

"What was that back there?"

He rolls his eyes and glances outside, probably thinking if he should wait the rain out or make a run for it.

You find that his flippant attitude is getting really old really fast, but instead of doing an eye roll of your own and leave, you press on,

"That trophy wasn't yours to dig up."

This time he snorts and all of a sudden you want to wipe that look off his face with your fists. It takes you by surprise; you're known for being habitually annoyed, but you are rarely aggressive. Belligerence takes too much effort and you don't think it's worth it in the end. But for Rin you'll be happy to make an exception. Besides, the closest you ever came lashing out in the past was the day he said he was leaving to become an Olympic swimmer. You wanted to scream at him back then - to knock him to the ground and call him a cheater. But the shock was too great, and you were just a kid. You had always thought the two of you… no matter. You're not a child anymore, and it's time Rin knows things have changed.

Something must have registered on your face because he's smirking openly now. He's obviously daring you, but out of the water it takes a whole different meaning. You're pretty sure you could beat him with your swimming, but could you beat him in a fistfight if it came to brawling? It's not your element, but whatever Rin thinks he can show you, you can show him _better_.

You take too long lost in your thoughts and he's looking outside again.

"Rin."

He cocks his head and gives you one more infuriating smirk, all teeth and malicious glee, and then he's gone.

You don't think about it, you just rush after him into the night, the bottoms of your trainers splashing dirty water all around you. You spot him on the opposite street before he disappears into an alleyway. A rush of excitement hits you as you play this strange version of hide and seek in the rain, and you manage to reach out and successfully grab him by the sleeve of his jacket before he can hide away again.

He throws you off and pushes you away. The rain is falling down harder now; it has seeped through your clothes, making your skin itch.

"Are you actually picking for a fight, Haru? Because, you gotta know, I don't fight girls." Rin says, trying for cool.

"Says the guy with the long hair."

"Says the guy with the girly name," he bites back, and you almost smile at how weak it is.

"I wasn't the one calling things 'romantic' back then, remember? You were a girl all along, Rin."

Rin's eyes widen comically, and this time you do smile. You step closer, and he raises his chin defiantly. Suddenly he seems wiry, blasé attitude all but abandoned, and it throws you off. You push into his personal space, a half formulated comment long forgotten in your head, and get a satisfying jolt when a fleeting look of uncertainty crosses his face.

"If I'm the girl then why does it look like you're going for a kiss, Nanase?"

He doesn't wait for you to answer and turns to leave. You couldn't have answered either way, but you don't want to him to go. You've seen Rin's back too many times.

You stop him with a hand on his shoulder, and then by some stupid compulsion you actually do make to kiss him, but he lifts his head so you land painfully on his jaw. You step back and try to read him; you've never seen such an expression on Rin's face before.

He's probably surprised but he's not being discouraging, so you try again; this time giving him plenty of time to move back. He doesn't, so the second kiss lands on the corner of his mouth, and the third one squarely on his lips.

You keep kissing him with short swipes and licks and bites, and with every kiss a hot gust twists deeper inside you. It spikes when Rin finally relents and open his mouth just a tiny bit. The shock of the sensation almost makes you stop, but you grab his arms and kiss him harder.

After a few more presses of your lips, you step back to give you both space to breathe. You blink the rain droplets from your eyelids, and wonder where all the light and sound has gone; you surely can't still be in that same alleyway when it feels like you've been swimming in the ocean for ages. Kissing is like every cliché proving true after all.

For some absurd reason you want to tell Rin that time can start moving again, now that he's back. He looks sideways, licking his lips, and you can't help but follow the quick movement with your eyes. And then you smile because you suddenly realize: Rin tastes like water.


End file.
